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FootballAl Nassr Boss Outlines 3 Areas Ronaldo and His Teammates Must Improve After Saudi Super Cup Exit
- Cristiano Ronaldo's adventure in Saudi Arabia has not gone entirely to plan
- His head coach at Al-Nassr Rudi Garcia has already criticized him following their exit from the Saudi Super Cup
- The 37-year-old will however have another opportunity to make amends for his false start next Friday when Al-Nassr face Al-Fateh
Rudi Garcia, head coach of Al-Nassr, has identified three areas his team needs to improve on in order to get the best out of Cristiano Ronaldo.
Garcia's charges suffered elimination from the Saudi Super Cup after falling to a 3-1 defeat, by extension their first loss since September 2022.
The game also featured superstar signing Cristiano Ronaldo, who has since found life difficult since completing his sensational move after missing a gilt-edge chance, per MARCA.
Reflecting on his side's defeat, the former Olympique Lyon manager highlighted key areas his team must improve going forward.
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“It is very important that the players play normally and don't always try to give Cristiano the ball,” Garcia said after the game as quoted by All Football.
He continued: “I told them they had to make the right decisions on the pitch.
“Obviously, when Cristiano or Anderson Talisca are alone and ask for the ball, we have to give them the ball. These two players are capable of making a difference.”
The 58-year-old gaffer added that the positioning of his two attackers was also proving to be problematic.
“I think sometimes we had good crossing positions, but there were not enough people in the box, sometimes not Ronaldo or Talisca.
"We have to work on it, have one of them in the area and maybe the other will play outside the area.”
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FootballWhat's next for Ronaldo?
The 37-year-old's next game for the Riyadh-based club will be an away trip to Al-Fateh, who are currently placed sixth on the Saudi league log.
Rudi Garcia criticizes Ronaldo
Al-Nassr coach, Rudi Garcia has appeared to put the blame for his side's elimination from the Saudi Super Cup on Cristiano Ronaldo.
Garcia's charges, led by their new superstar, bowed out of the competition at the semi-final stage following a 3-1 loss to Al-Ittihad on Thursday evening.
Reflecting on his side's exit, Garcia identified a chance missed by Ronaldo as the moment which turned the tie away from Al-Nassr's favour.
Ronaldo's false start continues
Sports Brief earlier reported that Cristiano Ronaldo's sojourn in Saudi Arabia has commenced on a tough note.
The Real Madrid record goal scorer, who is still awaiting his first Al-Nassr strike after two matches, saw his side booted out of the Saudi Super Cup.
Ronaldo's Al-Nassr crashed out of the competition after stumbling to a 3-1 defeat to Al-Ittihad on Thursday evening, per Mirror.